We have had a busy three months but unfortunately have not been able to blog! In order to fill you in, here are some of the things we have been up
to:
In September Jim
and Felix headed for a night in the mountains on a ‘Dads and Lads’ trip at mountain hut just below a glacier. They set off in shorts and had snow as they arrived at the hut and had the excitement of seeing ibex (mountain sheep) from a distance.
We also ran Bishkek’s first 5km Fun Run and really enjoyed
ourselves with a crowd of about 200 people, mainly Kyrgyz students. Felix was the fastest in the family...
In October we welcomed
nine Oasis colleagues from other countries where Oasis works for meetings and loved showing them around despite
the unusual amount of rain and lack of mountain views (many of them now think that Kyrgyzstan is flat and wet!) It was
great fun to have them here and especially to have a couple of African’s with
us (including Armando who leads Oasis in Mozambique!)
We then had the surprise news that our land lady wanted her
flat back for some family members. Within two weeks we found a good apartment
not too far away and moved in a week later.
It is the middle of three tower blocks
built in 1985 known in Kyrgyz as “Ooch Kadook”, meaning “The Three Towers”. We are
now on the top (7th) floor (with a good lift), enjoying a mountain view on
the clear days and slowly meeting new neighbours. We are already feeling at
home, although the whole process has been pretty unsettling.
In November we have seen the dramatic change of autumn
into winter with heavy snow falling this week. Thankfully our new flat is as
warm as the old one and smaller, so pretty cosy. One of the reasons we wanted to be in an
older-style flat was because it gives us more confidence about withstanding
earthquakes. Last week there was a tremor at breakfast time which was met with
concern by Jane but excitement from Rosie who said “ At last, one I have
actually felt and am old enough to remember!”
In terms of Oasis, Jane has been teaching a fortnightly cookery course throughout the
autumn, talking about nutrition and making pies, breakfasts, sauces and sandwiches
with a small group of young people. Of course the eating is the highlight, but
they do get really involved, ask good questions, are great choppers and good
fun to be with. And recently, Oasis threw an Autumn Party at the Youth Centre to
celebrate a year of it being open which was much enjoyed by about 30 young
people. In the meantime we see them growing and learning new skills through
work or study as they continue to find their way in the world outside
institutional life.
Jim has spent a lot of time on trying to raise funds for Oasis; frustratingly, although many funders see that this is important work with a vulnerable group of young people, it is nevertheless beyond the scope of their funding remit, and we are facing some challenging times and decisions.
December now approaches
and on Friday we are having a house warming / mulled wine and mince pie party and
are all very much looking forward to it.
For anyone wanting to send a Christmas card, you can send it
to the Oasis post box at:
Jim Currell, Country
Director, OBF Oasis Kyrgyzstan, Central Post Office, PO Box 2030, Bishkek,
Kyrgyz Republic, 720000
